New Delhi: The sixth season of Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) will begin at the EKA Arena in Ahmedabad with a double-header including a match between defending champions Dempo Goa Challengers and home team Ahmedabad SG Pipers.
Earlier in the evening, Season 2 winners Dabang Delhi TTC will face Sreeja Akula-led Jaipur Patriots in the opener. Eight franchises will compete across 23 ties with the finale set for June 15.
U Mumba TT, led by world No. 14 Bernadette Szocs and rising Indian star Yashaswini Ghorpade, begin their season with a Maharashtra Derby on June 1 against PBG Pune Jaguars, spearheaded by Spanish ace Alvaro Robles.
Debutants Kolkata ThunderBlades, featuring world youth no. 5 Ankur Bhattacharjee and Olympians Quadri Aruna and Adriana Diaz, open their campaign on June 2 against Season 3 winners Chennai Lions, headlined by China’s Fan Siqi, the most expensive pick at this year’s auction, and former world youth number one (U-17) Payas Jain.
Other key clashes lined up include the Western Derby between Mumbai and Ahmedabad on June 2.
A rematch of last year’s final between Dabang Delhi and Dempo Goa Challengers, which pits Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Diya Chitale against Harmeet Desai and Singapore’s Zeng Jian, is set for June 4.
The semifinals will be played on June 13 and 14.
Each team will play five ties in the group stage, while each tie will consist of five matches — two men’s singles, two women’s singles, and one mixed doubles.
After the league stage, the top four teams on the points table will progress to the knockout stage before the semifinals and the finals.
U Mumba TT, led by world No. 14 Bernadette Szocs and rising Indian star Yashaswini Ghorpade, begin their season with a Maharashtra Derby on June 1 against PBG Pune Jaguars, spearheaded by Spanish ace Alvaro Robles. Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today